Laurie Everett wins historic preservation award

CAPE GIRARDEAU, MO (KRCU) - Local Cape Girardeau business owner Laurie Everett won a Historic Preservation Award from the non-profit organization Main Street Connection. They recognized her store Annie Laurie’s Antiques at their annual conference on August 11.

Everett was recognized for was her support of Cape Girardeau’s downtown area through connecting her business with historic preservation efforts.

Everett feels that businesses in the downtown area should take pride in creating a welcoming environment for local patrons. She describes Annie Laurie’s antiques as a morph between a business and a community destination.

"I just try to make it a fun environment," Everett says. "I try to ignite all the senses when people come in. You know with the music, the sounds,and the colors. I just want people to feel like its more of an experience than just a retail shop."

Main Street Connection hopes to create enthusiasm among businesses owners and local people for the revitalization of downtown districts all across Missouri.

Hannah Parent, KRCU

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Heather Brooks win historic preservation award

CAPE GIRARDEAU, MO (KRCU) - Cape Girardeau Assistant City Manager Heather Brooks won an award for her efforts to revitalize the downtown area.

The non profit group Missouri Main Street Connection presented Brooks with its Outstanding Public Official award at its annual conference on August 11.

Brooks’ efforts to revive the downtown area include her work on the Downtown Strategic Plan and the town’s designation as a DREAM city. She believes a comprehensive effort will go beyond events and will encompass downtown beautification, economic development and traffic generation.

"There’s not just one solution that’s going to fix everything," Brooks says. "There are a lot of things you have to look at when your looking at revitalizing and keeping healthy a downtown area. You can’t just do events."

Brooks feels that a truly vibrant downtown requires a focus on keeping the area clean and looking its best. Another key issue is the need to keep local businesses healthy.

Looking forward, Brooks hopes to develop a Community Improvement District for the downtown.

Hannah Parent, KRCU

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Former museum director Marjorie Thompson dies

CAPE GIRARDEAU, MO (KRCU) - Cape Girardeau lost a leader in historic preservation on Monday.

Marjorie Thompson passed away Thursday morning at her home in Cape Girardeau. She was 86 years old.

Thompson worked tirelessly both as the director of the Cape River Heritage Museum as well as on its board and a volunteer. In addition, she was engaged a multitude of civic organizations.

She also restored and gave tours of her family’s home, known as the Longview House.

Friend and Museum Board member Bonnie Stepanoff says that Marge Thompson’s energy and passion was contagious. She also brought keen business sense.

"Sometimes people are interested in museums but they don’t really have a sense of how to pay the bills and bring in funds. Marge came from a business background she worked with her husband on their business. So she had a good sense of how to do that," Stepanoff said. "But she never let that take over. It was always fun. It was always about having fun and laughing and joking."

There will be a visitation service for Marge Thompson on Thursday at Ford and Sons Mount Auburn Chapel from 4:00 to 6:00. Her funeral will be Friday at Lorimer Cemetery.

Jacob McCleland, KRCU

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Historic Preservation Committee recommends tradition on Broadway

CAPE GIRARDEAU, MO (KRCU) - The Broadway Corridor Enhancement Project was presented to Cape Girardeau’s Historic Preservation Committee Wednesday in a public session. It marked another step on the road towards a more beautiful route to downtown Cape Giraradeau.

While the vibe was overwhelmingly positive, issues such as safety and sustainability were still raised by the committee and citizens in attendance such.

David Goncher says the project needs to take into account traffic flow … not only down Broadway but also across it.

However he is still excited about what the project could mean for the downtown district.

"It would approve the aesthetics obviously, but hopefully it will bring small business owners back to Broadway, and give it some, give Broadway some life again," Goncher said.

As for the committee, members were very supportive of the project and they recommend the plan feature more traditional design elements in order to keep in line with Broadway’s many historic buildings.

For KRCU, I’m Tim Filla

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Bones discovered in Birds Point-New Madrid Floodway

CHARLESTON, MO (KRCU) - Water has subsided in the Bird Points Floodway and farmers have returned to their land. But it's not the washed away top soil that has many talking. Instead, it’s the washed up… bones.

The fragments were discovered near the blasted section of the levee, in Mississippi County Missouri.

By time the Mississippi County Coroner, Terry Parker, and his team stopped counting, the bone fragments were spread out over six and a half acres of land.

Parker is unsure exactly how many bodies the found fragments are from, but he is confident that more bone fragments may be found in the area when they go to exhume those they have already discovered.

Parker believes that the bones are likely from the area around or even under the part of the levee that was blasted.

However he is less certain as to whom the bones are from.

"Could possibly be early Native American, it could be early American settlers that were going to the west. It could be people that had resided in the early 1900’s, and that was their homestead, and as common they were buried there on the family home property," Parker said.

The bone fragments as well as the site have been turned over by Parker and the county to the Missouri State Parks and Historic Preservation Team.

The team is now tasked not only with discovering what time period the bones are from, but also what people the bones are from.

"You know if it’s American Indian, you know we have certain policies we have to follow and leave them as undisturbed as possible," Parker said. "So I think that right now they are in process there in the process of investigating, doing forensics to determine the nationality of the remains. And then at that point you know the process of collecting and reentering will happen."

Parker says that the process may take some time due to the degree of decomposition as well as the need for an accurate identification of what people the fragments are from.

Tim Filla, KRCU

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Old Jefferson named to endangered historic building list

CAPE GIRARDEAU, MO (KRCU) - The Old Jefferson School in Cape Girardeau has been added to the state’s list of most endangered historic buildings.

The school is the oldest standing school building in Cape Girardeau. It is significant because it is the only remaining school that educated African-American student during segregation, between the years 1953 and 1955.

Jefferson took over as the African-American school after the John Cobb School burned down.

The building is already on the National Register of Historic Places. Historic preservationist Terri Foley says that the most endangered historic buildings list does not open Jefferson School to any new legal protections or funding avenues.

“It’s basically telling the Cape Girardeau community and the state of Missouri, look at this building. It’s endangered. It played a significant role. It’s a significant historical building. Something needs to be done about it or you are going to lose very valuable historic resource,” Foley said.

Guy and Rene Tomasino currently own the property and they are trying to sell it. Foley says that the building could be used as an office building, community center, health care clinic, or as an apartment complex, such as the old Schultz school.

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Historic Preservation students disassemble casino zone homes for class project

CAPE GIRARDEAU, MO (KRCU) - Southeast Historic Preservation students got a rare treat yesterday when they were given the opportunity by Isle of Capri to remove parts of the buildings that are slated for demolition.

Dave Hearns, teacher's assistant for the class, stated the primary focus of this project is to remove windows and sashes for students to take part in a window workshop later on in the semester. Students learned how to properly remove windows and will then be able to work with these windows during the workshop.

"We were able to take the frames we have now and clean the frames and remove the old glazing and points, repoint and reglaze the windows and basically teach them how to work with wooden frame windows," Hearns said.

Hearns and fellow students were allowed to remove not only windows, but flooring, trim, and door frames before the house was to be torn down.

The casino purchased 63 properties in downtown Cape Girardeau that will be torn down this month. The casino has allowed for the buildings to be used in a learning capacity for University students, as well as the local police and fire departments.

Matthew Caldwell, KRCU

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